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To add your own post, double-click anywhere, drag files in, or click the pink icon in the bottom right corner.

Then just type and upload!

It's easiest to see all the options for uploading by clicking the three dots on the lower right of the box from which you are typing. (You'll see this when you add your own post).

Be sure to add a photo (or drawing, where you saw it, what you noticed about it (or wonder about it), and what kind you think it is.

You can also comment on one another's bird posts!

I can't wait to see what you find :)

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Grace's teacher shared that she saw a pair of house finches on her window bird-feeder! She lives in Okemos, Michigan. I wonder if the more colorful one is the male and if the brown one is the female. What do you think?

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The Canadian Geese on the Looking Glass River were super loud! 3/26/2020

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My grandma loves bird watching. She sent me this picture she got of a bald eagle who built a nest in her backyard. 2-30-2020 from Webster, WI

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Last June in my yard in Lansing, MI.
I think Daddy Cardinal was encouraging Baby to fly he was sitting on a nearby branch. I think Baby was worried about learning to fly. She seemed to be saying, "Nope too scary, nope too scary."

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I'm hoping this short video works. Taken 2 summers ago on Tee Lake up north, Lewiston,  MI I wonder what you see the loons doing?

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2006 Yard at previous house
What do you see hiding in the leaves?

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Sophie recommended:

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The award-winning field guide, completely redesigned

The Audubon Bird Guide is a free and complete field guide to over 800 species of North American birds, right in your pocket. Built for all experience levels, it will help you identify the birds around you, keep track of the birds you've seen, and get outside to find new birds near you.

With over 2 million downloads to date, it is one of the best and most trusted field guides for North American birds.

What's New

Our most recent update features a home screen that's easier to use, an improved Explore section, and look and feel upgrades throughout. Check out a preview of the update here.

Key Features

Bird ID

It's now easier than ever to identify a bird you just saw. Enter all you were able to observe-what color was it? How big? What did its tail look like?-and Bird ID will narrow down a list of possible matches for your location and date in real time.

Learn about the birds you love

Our field guide features over 3,000 photos, over eight hours of audio clips of songs and calls, multi-season range maps, and in-depth text by leading North American bird expert Kenn Kaufman.

Keep track of all the birds you see

With our completely redesigned Sightings feature, you can keep a record of every bird you encounter, whether you're hiking, sitting on the porch, or simply catching a glimpse of birds out the window. We'll even keep an updated life list for you.

Explore the birds around you

See where the birds are with nearby birding hotspots and real-time sightings from eBird.

Share photos

Post your photos to the Photo Feed so other Audubon Bird Guide users can see your best bird shots.

Get involved with Audubon

Keep up with the latest news from the world of birds, science, and conservation. Find an Audubon location near you to go birding. Or see where your voice is needed and take action to protect birds and the places they need, right from your app.

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The Audubon Bird Guide is a free and complete field guide to over 800 species of North American birds, right in your pocket. Built for all experience levels, it will help you identify the birds around you, keep track of the birds you've seen, and get outside to find new birds near you.

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Lansing, MI
Hanging out on my shepherd's crook by the bird feeder. 2010
Coopers Hawk?
I wonder what He Eats?

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I don't draw very many birds but I draw on their eggs.
1. small chicken egg
2. regular size chicken egg
3. peacock egg, decorated
4. turkey egg
5. goose egg
6. Ostrich egg

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2009 Lansing, MI
I had a pond in my backyard and this pair were visiting my yard. They are a Male and Female Mallard duck. I wonder what kind of nest they build?

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I've been staying with my boyfriend during the quarantine.. and these are his aunt's Pekin's.. they live next door :-) Found on 3/26/2020

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Canadian Goose found in the Looking Glass River in DeWitt MI on 3/26/2020

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I saw this pair of cardinals this afternoon. I just noticed a third bird behind them when I went to post this picture! Soon after, the male cardinal swooped down and sat on the bird feeder! My dog barked and spooked him away before he got to eat.

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I thought it was interesting to see the wingspan of different birds compared to each other. (wingspan=how far the wings reach when fully spread out)
http://english-speak-english.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/IMGP2331.jpg

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I took this at a zoo in Florida a few years ago. I noticed that their necks and heads look like a heart.

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It's the same baby as in the previous video. Look how she stretches her wings. Do you think she will be able to use them to fly yet? Why?

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If you are part of facebook, I recommend "liking" Nature Discovery, which is an organization from Williamston, MI. They have an interesting tutorial on how to attract eastern bluebirds to your yard! They also have some interesting frog things. You can even visit them in person right now, as long as you give them a heads up!

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"You have no choice but to become a backyard birder!" haha ;)

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1. The Farmworkers Risking Their Lives to Keep the Food Supply Going

2. A Slate Investigation Into Whether Dove Soap Is Actually Soap

3. The Pandemic Is Giving Animals a Temporary New World

4. COVID-19 Should Make Us Rethink Our Destructive Relationship With the Natural World

With the world on lockdown, public spaces closing, and only so many episodes of Tiger King to keep us entertained, we've got little left but to stare out our windows. Thankfully, the optimistic isolationist will find a whole amazing world of wildlife out there, enough to keep you busy until this is all over (and even beyond). It's time to become a backyard birder.

Birding is a perfect hobby for the quarantined. It requires little more than eyes and ears and some open sky. Like a good sitcom, you can follow the exploits of the main cast (the resident birds in your neighborhood) and enjoy a rotating collection of guest stars (migratory birds passing through in the coming weeks). You can be an active participant by feeder or building bird boxes, or you can just watch the action unfold. Plus, I mean, what the hell else are you going to do?

Here are a few tips to help you make the most of your new, forced hobby.

Learn Some Birds

Depending on where you live and what kind of habitat you've got, it's possible to see upward of 200 different bird species in your backyard. In reality, you'll see many fewer than that, but it helps to be prepared.

You'll want to start with finding some kind of guide to help you figure out what you're looking at. Paper field guides like the Sibley or Crossley guides are great, but apps are even easier to access given our present circumstances. The digital Sibley app is by far my favorite, with clear illustrations and birdsongs for each species. I also suggest that beginners download the Merlin app, which uses A.I. to identify birds from photographs with incredible accuracy. All the information can be a little overwhelming, but the best way to start is by scanning the different little maps to see what birds are most likely to be seen in your area.

It helps to have some binoculars, because birds are small and far away and because getting a closer view greatly enhances your appreciation of their beauty and behavior. Those old clunkers you inherited from your grandparents will do, but upgrading to a nicer pair (these Nikon Monarchs are a favorite) are a vast improvement in terms of weight and optic quality. Going without binoculars is fine, too, and can actually help you focus on the basics: What is the bird's overall color? Is it bigger or smaller than my fist? Do any markings or patterns show up? All that info can help you figure out what you're looking at.

Get in the Rhythm

If there are any silver linings to all this, it's that spring is an excellent time to be a beginning birder. We're at the start of spring migration, that glorious time when billions of birds of all shapes and sizes flutter their way north from the tropics to breed in the warming north.

April and May are peak months for birds both passing through your backyard or past your window on their way to nesting grounds elsewhere. Also, if you play your cards right, you might even get a couple nesting and raising young right outside your window. New species will be arriving every day. The coolest way to keep up with migration is via BirdCast, which looks at weather patterns and species' historical migration times to forecast exactly which species will be showing up in your area during a given week.

There's also a daily routine you should learn. Birds are loudest and most active-and so are easiest to see-in the mornings. Getting up early is the hardest part of birding for me, but, again, it's not like we've got anything else going on these days. Alternatively, birds spend most of the rest of the day feeding, so if you've got feeders in your backyard, you're golden all day long.

Prepare Your Backyard

There's a ton you can do to make your backyard more attractive to birds, though the most helpful project is one that the fewest of us focus on: planting native plants. Most all birds need insects, mostly juicy, easy-to-catch caterpillars, to raise their young. And lots of them. A single pair of tiny chickadees, for example, needs between 6,000 and 9,000 caterpillars each spring to raise a single clutch of eggs. But because most insects evolved to rely on only a few species of plant, introducing non-native plants means caterpillars can't survive, and then birds can't feed.

So, plant native plants. They can be a bit tricky to find-most nurseries focus on pretty cultivars instead of natives-but start with the Native Plant Database from the National Audubon Society to help you figure out what will work in your yard, and what birds it might attract.

Next, put some feeders up. There are a ton of options to choose from, and all are pretty good. One tip here is to look at the seed you're buying and avoid mixes that contain milo, a big red seed that is used as filler but is avoided by most birds. Nature stores have better selections than big chain stores, and those smaller businesses could sure use your dollars right now.

Finally, you're just in time to hang some bird boxes. Many bird species will take up residence in boxes, which mimic natural cavities in trees, but birds are actually pretty particular about moving in. Before you start throwing up bird houses please check out Cornell's NestWatch site, which tells you how big to make the hole, which direction the box should face, how high off the ground, and other tips to make your real estate the most attractive.

Prepare Your Not-Backyard

Don't have a backyard? That's OK too, there are still plenty of birds to see from your apartment window. Spring migration also means raptor migration, and hawks, eagles, falcons, vultures, and other birds of prey are currently on their way up. Unlike most smaller birds, raptors migrate during the day, making them easier to see as they pass over cities. Some species are also resident in urban areas, where they hunt pigeons and starlings. Look for the fierce Cooper's hawk as it uses buildings and other structures as cover during its ambush-hunts, or the famous Peregrine falcon as it dive-bombs unsuspecting prey from above.

Feeders work in the city, too, and there are ones that can be suction-cupped to a window. In general, though, the variety of species that will come to a feeder in the city, especially one high off the ground, is much lower than suburban counterparts. So, get ready to make some friends with house finches, mourning doves, and house sparrows.

Feeling ready now? Excited to take advantage of this forced quarantine to develop a deeper appreciation for your local nature? I sure hope so, because you have no other options. But really-birds are the perfect way to remember that even the smallest backyard contains a big world, and one that's worth watching.

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You Have No Choice but to Become a Backyard Birder

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The Farmworkers Risking Their Lives to Keep the Food Supply Going A Slate Investigation Into Whether Dove Soap Is Actually Soap The Pandemic Is Giving Animals a Temporary New World COVID-19 Should Make Us Rethink Our Destructive Relationship With the Natural World With the world on lockdown, public spaces closing, and only so many episodes of Tiger King to keep us entertained, we've got little left but to stare out our windows.

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This This past summer/ fall a female cardinal came to my parents’ home. She began to fly into our big window located by the front door. She flew into the window multiple times. We could hear her beak hit the window each time. Never seemed hurt but my parents began to wonder if she was sick. Days went by of her doing this eventually she found every single window at my parents’ home and she would travel about the house multiple times a day beginning around 7 a.m. My family believes that if a cardinal is visiting someone in heaven is visiting. But this kind of behavior has never came about from the cardinals that have visited our yard in the past.

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This bald eagle was in a tree as I was driving up north. I was able to pull over and take the picture. 2008 Lewiston, MI.

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I filled the feeders after they were empty for about a month...this was the first critter to notice...
3-26-2020 my yard

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Little sparrow in the bush watching to see if it was safe to visit the feeder. 2-28-2020 my yard

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Special video for Grace. She told me that chickadees are her favorite. 2-28-2020 my yard

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2-28-2020 my yard

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my first time seeing one in the wild Lewiston MI, Oct. 2019

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Really like the "sparkles" the sun created.

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2 males, 1 female
They were near the wood duck, first time seeing them too. Lewiston MI, Oct 2019

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Look who I found at our feeder today!!

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While I was out running at Woldumar Nature Center I spotted a male cardinal. Can you spot him?

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I am sure there were some birds in the forest, but their noises were being covered up by the spring peppers (a frog) singing their own song.

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This little bird was looking into a hole on this barn. What do you think they was looking for?

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Visits every day often with his lady friend. Hope they nest in my yard again. 3-30-2020 my yard

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This stinker figured out how to open the top of the feeder! 4-1-2020 my yard

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This little guy likes to hop around under the feeder to find dropped seeds. I wonder if the male and female look the same? 4-1-2020 my yard

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I wonder if there will be a nest here later? 3-29-2020 Riverwalk

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I wonder what he is looking for?
Lewiston MI, 4-5-2020
We went on whirlwind trip to get our camper.

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I know...I'm wondering if you can figure it out. :)
Seen in Lewiston MI, 4-5-2020

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Has Grace done any bird drawings or paintings?

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In the country near Lansing 4-7-2020

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my front yard, 4-7-2020

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Fran's Bird named Perdy Bird

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My cat Mufasa would really like a tasty bird treat.

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OK, there's no bird but I thought this was too funny